Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Thời gian làm bài: 60 phút không kể thời gian phát đề
Thời gian làm bài: 60 phút không kể thời gian phát đề
2
researchers in 53 percent of cases and in New York just 44 percent. The psychologists found that, in these cities, people tend
to be short of time, so they hurry and often ignore strangers.
(Adapted from Complete IELTS by Guy Brook-Hart and Vanessa Jakeman)
Question 31. Which best serves as the title for the passage?
A. What makes a city population less friendly B. The world’s friendliest city
C. The environment and culture of a city D. The research of psychologists about different cities
Question 32. According to paragraph 1, people living on a tight budget tend to _______
A. be more aloof B. be more companionable C. be more ignorant D. be happier
Question 33. The word “they” in paragraph 3 refers to ________
A. strangers B. cities C. locals D. researchers
Question 34. The word “relaxed” in paragraph 4 mostly means ________
A. rigid B. controlled C. easygoing D. disciplined
Question 35. Which of the following is true, according to the passage?
A. Citizens living in poor countries tend to be less friendly to strangers
B. Cultural diversity makes Rio an ideal place to live
C. Rio de Janeiro in Brazil comes out top in the most dangerous city for its crimes.
D. People in wealthier cities seem to rush because they are void of time.
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each
of the questions from 36 to 42
People of every culture tell each other fairy tales but the same story often takes a variety of forms in different parts of the
world. In the story of Little Red Riding Hood that European children are familiar with, a young girl on the way to see her
grandmother meets a wolf and tells him where she is going. The wolf runs on ahead and disposes of the grandmother, then
gets into bed dressed in the grandmother’s clothes to wait for Little Red Riding Hood. You may think you know the story –
but which version?
The universal appeal of these tales is frequently attributed to the idea that they contain cautionary messages: in the case of
Little Red Riding Hood, to listen to your mother, and avoid talking to strangers. ‘It might be what we find interesting about
this story is that it’s got this survival-relevant information in it,’ says anthropologist Jamie Tehrani at Durham University in
the UK. But his research suggests otherwise. ‘We have this huge gap in our knowledge about the history and prehistory of
storytelling, despite the fact that we know this genre is an incredibly ancient one,’ he says. That hasn’t stopped
anthropologists, folklorists and other academics devising theories to explain the importance of fairy tales in human society.
Tehrani’s analysis focused on Little Red Riding Hood in its many forms, which include another Western fairy tale known as
The Wolf and the Kids. Checking for variants of these two tales and similar stories from Africa, East Asia, and other regions,
he ended up with 58 stories recorded from oral traditions. First, he tested some assumptions about which aspects of the story
alter least as it evolves, indicating their importance. Folklorists believe that what happens in a story is more central to the
story than the characters in it.
However, Tehrani found no significant difference in the rate of evolution of incidents compared with that of characters.
Neither did his analysis support the theory that the central section of a story is the most conserved part.
But the really big surprise came when he looked at the cautionary elements of the story. ‘Studies on hunter-gatherer folk tales
suggest that these narratives include really important information about the environment and the possible dangers that may
be faced there – stuff that’s relevant to survival. Yet in his analysis such elements were just as flexible as seemingly trivial
details. What, then, is important enough to be reproduced from generation to generation?
The answer, it would appear, is fear – blood-thirsty and gruesome aspects of the story, such as the eating of the grandmother
by the wolf, turned out to be the best preserved of all. Why are these details retained by generations of storytellers, when
other features are not? Tehrani has an idea: ‘In an oral context, a story won’t survive because of one great teller. It also needs
to be interesting when it’s told by someone who’s not necessarily a great storyteller.’ Maybe being swallowed whole by a
wolf, then cut out of its stomach alive is so gripping that it helps the story remain popular, no matter how badly it’s told.
Mathias Clasen at Aarhus University in Denmark isn’t surprised by Tehrani’s findings. ‘Habits and morals change, but the
things that scare us, and the fact that we seek out entertainment that’s designed to scare us – those are constant,’ he says.
Clasen believes that scary stories teach us what it feels like to be afraid without having to experience real danger, and so
build up resistance to negative emotions.
(Adapted from Cambridge English IELTS Academic 15)
Question 36. What best serves as the title for the passage?
A. Why are fairy tales really scary tales? B. Childhood memories are fairy tales
C. Different versions of Little Red Riding Hood D. Case study: Fairy tales and their happy endings
Question 37. The word “they” in paragraph 2 refers to ______
A. anthropologists B. folklorists C. tales D. storytellers
Question 38. According to the passage, what method did Jamie Tehrani use to test his ideas about fairy tales?
3
A. He compared oral and written forms of the same stories
B. He looked at many different forms of the same basic story
C. He looked at unrelated stories from many different countries
D. He contrasted the development of fairy tales with that of regions around the world
Question 39. The word “conserved” in paragraph 4 mostly means ________
A. important B. confusing C. interesting D. maintained
Question 40. The word “gruesome” in paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to _______
A. filthy B. captivating C. ghastly D. intriguing
Question 41. Which of the following is NOT true, according to the passage?
A. All the fairy tales analysed by Tehrani were originally written rather than spoken
B. In fairy tales, details of the plot show considerable global variation
C. Tehrani rejects the idea that the useful lessons for life in fairy tales are the reason for their survival.
D. Various theories about the social significance of fairy tales have been developed without factual basis
Question 42. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
A. Fairy tales are a safe way of learning to deal with fear
B. It is commonly believed that fairy tales are packed with contradictory messages
C. The changing values of our society are more widely accepted thanks to fairy tales
D. The preservation of a fairy tales are attributable to a great narrator
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the
following questions.
Question 43. After graduating from Columbia in 2003, he becomes a scholar, travelling to Oxford.
A. graduating B. becomes C. scholar D. travelling
Question 44. Jellyfish are not harmless since its sting can cause a serious allergic reaction in some people.
A. harmless B. its C. cause D. allergic
Question 45. Some people believe animal behaviour could offer a viable alternative means of earthquake detective.
A. behaviour B. viable C. means D. detective
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that is closest in meaning to each of the
following questions.
Question 46. It’s ten years since I came back to my hometown.
A. The last time I came back to my hometown was ten years. B. I haven’t come back to my hometown for ten years.
C. I have come back to my hometown for ten years. D. I last come back to my hometown ten years ago.
Question 47. “Don’t put your fingers in your mouth again, Dan.” said Dan’s mother to him
A. Dan’s mother reminded him to put his fingers in his mouth again.
B. Dan’s mother told him not to put his fingers in his mouth again.
C. Dan’s mother asked him not to put your fingers in your mouth again.
D. Dan’s mother threatened to put his fingers in his mouth again.
Question 48. It is required by law that those who are in close contact with covid-19 are isolated.
A. Those who are in close contact with covid-19 may be isolated.
B. Those who are in close contact with covid-19 should be isolated.
C. Those who are in close contact with covid-19 will be isolated.
D. Those who are in close contact with covid-19 must be isolated.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best combines each pair of sentences in
the following questions.
Question 49. She gave a great performance at the festival. She became more famous.
A. Were she not to give a great performance at the festival, she wouldn’t become more famous.
B. Suppose that she had given a great performance at the festival, she wouldn’t have become more famous.
C. Had she not given a great performance at the festival, she wouldn’t have become more famous.
D. If she had given a she wouldn’t have become more famous, she would have become more famous.
Question 50. Tim dropped out of school at the age of 14. He regrets it now.
A. As long as Tim didn’t drop out of school at the age of 14, he wouldn’t regret it now.
B. Tim wished he hadn’t dropped out of school at the age of 14.
C. If Tim hadn’t dropped out of school at the age of 14, he wouldn’t regret it then.
D. If only Tim wouldn’t drop out of school at the age of 14.